Apple updates iBooks & iTunes U with fresh, flatter looks for iOS 7

Apple on Thursday issued a major update for its iBooks application, giving it a cleaner and simpler look in line with the company's design for the iOS 7 platform.

iBooks version 3.2 for both iPhone and iPad is now available for download from the iOS App Store. The free update ditches the skeuomorphic look of its predecessor in favor of a simplified appearance.

While iBooks previously feature a digital wooden bookshelf that would rotate like a hidden entrance to access the iBookstore, the new application features a greyish-white background where titles are displayed. Accessing the store now simply jumps to a new window where titles can be purchased.

The iBooks icon for iOS has also been updated with an orange gradient background behind a white illustration of an open book.

The same color scheme is also used in the new icon for iTunes U version 1.4, which features a graduate's cap as the centerpiece of its logo. Its new virtual bookshelf is similar in appearance to the redesign of iBooks.

The release notes for both updates state that the applications have been given "an all-new look and feel" bringing them in line with iOS 7.

With Thursday's updates, almost all of Apple's downloadable applications for iOS 7 have been updated with fresh new looks for iOS 7. The most significant remaining outlier is Find My Friends, which continues to feature skeuomorphic stitched leather textures prominently throughout the application.